Former BBC Radio 1 boss 'knew of Jimmy Savile rumours'. P5Julian Assange backers refuse to 'betray' him. P6David Aaronovitch: In Jimmy Savile's day, people looked other way at sex abuse claims. P25Matthew Parris: MediaCity is more like a skyscraper shanty town. P26Future of Financial Times called into question as Dame Marjorie Scardino steps down at Pearson. P43

It's become a tradition as firmly established as the festive season – the BBC is film its Christmas and Easter editions of Songs of Praise in October, five months early. In what the Daily Mirror trumpets as an "exclusive", it reveals that there will be back-to-back shoots for the two specials, themed with holly and daffodils respectively. The paper reports: "A BBC spokeswoman insisted it always filmed both specials back to back to save cash. She explained: We're not faking it. The congregations know what they are in for. Obviously we dress the church appropriately.'" Since the issue of "fakery" in the Songs of Praise specials was widely raised in the press as far back as 2007, perhaps the Mirror is relying too much on the ghost of Christmas past? Daily Mirror P35